I was actually really looking forward to running the Bedfont Lakes Parkrun, as it was a week since my “stressed out day from losing my motorbike keys” moment in the Old Deer Park: and Bedfont Lakes is (sort of) on the way to Royal Wooton Bassett where I was going to have lunch with my Aunt and Uncle and Cousin: and the England match with Sweden was on (so of course it was a GREAT afternoon anyway!!).
So anyway I was less than ecstatic to realise halfway to the run that i had forgotten to bring my barcode. No matter, i thought, because last week at the Old Deer Park I had eavesdropped on one of the volunteers taking down the names of people who had finished but had not brought their barcodes, so i knew for sure they would do this for me too, today! Wouldn’t they?
Sooooo……. Bedfont Lakes Country Park is in the London Borough of Hounslow. Until the 1920s it formed part of a large orchard that supplied Covent Garden market. It was then worked for sand and gravel until the 1950s, presumably for the building and expansion of Heathrow Airport which opened in the 1950s. Then it was used as a refuse site (yuk!) for landfill, leaving a mixture of polluted lakes, wasteland, and abandoned machinery.
Here is the London Borough of Hounslow!
Bedfont Lakes Country Park is a very pretty area of land, with rich wildlife, since it was rescued from landfill in the 70s! Here are a couple of nice pictures of it.
So I felt like the run went pretty well, although i am still feeling like i am running through treacle, and that my stomach is always full of food and that my lungs are going to burst at any minute…… but apart from that i am feeling fine!
Here is the run…… it was two laps.
At the end of the run I went up to the race director and asked if i could just give my name, as i had forgotten my barcode. I thought i was very polite, as i always try to be…… yet the response was a rather strongly and absurdly rude and emphatic “NO”. I was a little taken aback as i thought it wouldn’t be a problem. I wonder whether she was brazilian, as she sounded south american, and Brazil had just lost their qualifying match a day or so ago. I thought that must have been it, and gave her the benefit of the doubt.
Anyway, no matter, i’ll just have to do it again.
So then i made my way to Royal Wooton Bassett, and had a lovely lunch with my Auntie Sheila, Uncle Arthur, and Cousin Nikki.
Here’s a picture of my favourite Auntie! This was taken after the England vs Sweden game, so we were extra happy!
Next week………. Northala Fields
Gavin's Blog 